Torpedo-placer.



No. 870,437. PATENTED Nov. 5, 1007.

F. JAMES.

TORPEDO PLACER. APPLIUATION FILED MAY 1e. 1007.

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ATTORNEYS- No. 870,437. i PATENTBD 1707.5, 1907. RJAMES. TORPEDO PLACER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 16, 1907.

2 SH ETS-SHEET 2.

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A TTU/WEYSl FREDERICK JAMES, OF LANESBORO, PENNSYLVANIA.

TORPEDO-PLACER.

No. 870,437. y

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 5, 1907.

Application sied May 16, 1907. semi No. 373 961.

To all whom it may concern: il

Be it known that I, FREDERICK JAMES, a citizen of the United States, anda resident of Lanesboro, in the county of Susquehanna and State ofPennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement inTorpedo-Placers, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription.

I The purpose of the invention is to provide a device fonplacing atorpedo on the track in position to be exploded, and for automaticallyexploding the placed torpedo by the passage of a train should theengineer run-.by a semaphore set against him.

It is a further purpose of the invention to provide a compact," simpleand durable device capable of containing a number of torpedoes, andhaving means for feeding the torpedoes one by one as required to theposition where the torpedo can be automatically struck and explodedunder predetermined conditions, and also to provide the device withmeans for automatically tripping the striking mechanism when set andpassed by the train.

It is another piupose of the invention to operate the torpedo feedingmechanism and the mechanism for setting the striking device, from thesame lever employed to operate the signal.

The invention consists in the novel construction and combination of theseveral parts, as will be hereinafter fully set -forth and pointed outin the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar characters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure l is a plan view of the torpedo placer, with its cover' brokenaway, illustrating its position relatively to the track and a semaphore;Fig` 2 is an enlarged transverse section through a rail of the track andthrough the forward end portion of the device, the section being takenpractically on the line 2-2 of Fig. l; Fig. 3 is an enlargedlongitudinal section taken practically on the line 3-3 of Fig. l; Fig, 4is an enlarged longitudinal section through the casing of the device,taken practically on the line 3 3 of Fig. l, the section being takendirectly through the hammer shaft of the mechanism only, Fig. 5 is anenlarged detail perspective view of the lever for operating the feedmechanism and for setting the striking mechanism; and Fig. 6 is anenlarged view of a portion of the side of the device presented to thetrack, illustrating the hammer raised and a torpedo in position to bestruck thereby.

A represents a rail of a track, B a semaphore, B' a shifting levertherefor, and B2 the wire or rod connection between the shiftingmechanism and the operating mechanism for the semaphore. The casing Cfor the device is usually made rectangular, as is shown, with a rearextension l0 that may be termed a magazine chamber, and thekdevicegissot-placed on the sleepers of the rail as to present a side of themagazine chamber or extension 10 parallel to the rail, as is shown inFig. l.

The casing is provided with a cover Il so placed thereon that it may bereadily removed to expose the inclosed mechanism. The floor or bottom l2of the magazine `chamber l0 is of greater thickness than the floor ofthemain portion of the casing, with the exception of that portion I3that is at the rear portion of the casing, as is shown in Fig. l, and inthis raised bottom section 13 of the casing a recess 14 is produced,that extends practically from the outer side of the casing to the innerside, or that which is parallel with the rail, and this recessed portion14 of the bottom of the casing is made to extend out through an openingl5 in the inner side of the casing to provide an anvil 14u for thereception of the torpedo to be struck, as is shown in Figs. l and 6, Theupper face of this anvil extension 14EL from thel frame, is flush withthe recessed surface 14, and in the bottom portion l2 of the magazinechamber l0 a longitudinal recess 15L is made in its upper face, thebottom wall of which recess 152L is in the same hori- Zontal plane withthe recessed surface 14of the thicker bottom section 13 `of the casing,as is indicated in Fig. 3.l

A feed bar I6 is mounted to slide upon therecessed portion of the bottomsection 13, and is adapted inits outward movement to travel practicallyto the end of the anvil extension 14, as is shown in dotted lines inFig. l. This feed bar 16 is provided with teeth 17 upon its innerlongitudinal edge, as is clearly shown in Fig. 1, and at ,its outer endportion an opening or pocket 18 is provided, adapted to receive theinnermost torpedo 19 of a series that is located in the recess l5a ofthe magazine chamber, the torpedoes being arranged one back of theother, the voutermost one being engaged by a follower 20 and thefolloweris pressed inward by a spring 2l at the rear of it. Thus whenthe magazine chamber 10 is loaded with torpedoes and the feed bar 16 isin its inner position, a torpedo 19 will always be in the open pocket 18of the said feed bar, and as the feed bar 16 is carried outward it takesthe torpedo that is in its pocket upon the anvil extension 14a, holdingthe torpedo in position to be exploded by means to be shortly'described, and at such time the remainder of the torpedoes are held inplace by the engagement of the outermost one of the series with theouter edge of the feed bar 16.

A shaft 22, which I term a hammer shaft, has its ends reduced, and thesaid reduced ends are journaled one in the inner side face of thecasing, extending outJ beyond said face, the other reduced end beingjournaled in a suitable bearing 23 in-the casing, as is shown in Fig. 2.The handle 24a of a hammer 24, is secured in any approved manner to theouter end of the shaft 22, as is particularly shown in Figs. 2 and 6.The shaft 22 adjacent its inner end has loosely mounted thereon the hub25 of a segmental gear 25, the teeth whereof are D is' provided withteeth 38, and these teeth 38 are beveled, and adjacent the outer face ofthe said hub 25EL I of the segmental gear, a wheel 26 is secured to theshaft 22, and this wheel is provided with a marginal flange 27, and insaidr flange a notch or recess 28 is produced. A spring 29 is coiledaround the hammer shaft and one end of this spring is secured to thewheel 26, while the other end of the spring is attached to the casing,and the tendency of this spring is to throw the hammer 24 down tostriking engagement with the anvil extension 14u.

A segmental dog 31 is pivoted at what maybe termed its upper end, at theupper portion of the segmental gear 25 upon the outer face ofsaid gear,as is shown best in Figs. 3 and 4, and this dog 31 is provided with atooth 3'0, which is adapted to enter the notch or recess 28 in the'flange of the wheel 26 secured to the hammer shaft 22. The dog 3lextends some distance around the periphery of the Wheel 26, as is bestshown in Fig. 4, and its tooth 30 is held normally in engagement lwiththe flange of the wheel 26 by a suitably mounted spring 32 carried bythe gear and having bearing on the dog. When the hammer is to be carriedto an upright position so' asto deliver a blow, the spring 29 is placedunder tension and this is accomplished by moving the segmental gear 25forwardly or in direction of the signal B, at which time the tooth 30 ofthe dog 31 will enter the notch or recess 28 of the wheel 26, and thesaid wheel will be carried with the said gear, and the twowill continueto rotate in a direction described until the hammer is in the uprightpositionshown in Figs. 2 and 6, and the spring 29 is placed undersufficient tension to cause the hammer to deliver a strong blow on theplaced torpedo 19 when the wheel 26 is released from the dog 31, whichis accomplished through the medium of a simple mechanism to' be shortlydescribed` The feed bar 16 and the segmental gear 25 are both opera-tedsimultaneously by a single operating lever D, one form of which isillustrated in Fig. 5 of the drawings. This lever consists of asegmental horizontal body section 33, having an eye 34 formed aboutcentrally of its straight edge, which eye receives a pivot post 35located in the said casing, and at the convexed edge of the body section33 of the lever, teeth 36 are produced, adapted to mesh with the teeth17 on the feed bar 16, and furthermore the said operating lever D isprovided with an extension segmental section 37, integral with what maybe termed the inner end of the body and the two sections 33 and 37 arein the same horizontal plane, but one in advance of the other, and the'two sections are connected by a substantially vertic'al connectingmember 39. The convexed edge of the elevated or extension section 37 ofthe operating lever beveled, since they are adapted to mesh with theteeth of the' segmental gear 25 when the teeth 36 mesh with the' teethof the feed bar 16. Thus if the operating lever is turned in onedirection, it will carry the feed bar 16 outward, the latter taking atorpedo with it, and at the same time the segmental gear 25 will berocked in the direction to cause the shaft 22 to be turned to elevatethe hammer, and the two said parts 16 and 22 will be held in their setpositions by reason of the two contacts of the said lever -D. The leverD is provided with a shank 40, that extends out through an opening 4l inwhat may be termed the outer face of the casing of the device, and thisshank 4() has a link connection 42 or a sliding connection of anydescription, with the connecting rod or medium B2 between the signal Band the shifting lever Bf for the signal, and when the signal is set fordanger the lever D is simultaneously operated to carry out a torpedoonto the anvil 14El and to set the hammer 24 for a blow.

The trip for the hammer operating mechanism may be of differentformation, but a simple and preferred form is shown best in Figs. l, 3and 4, wherein a rod 43 is journaled partly upon a sleeper and partlywithin the casing of the device. This rod is provided with a crank -arm44 at its inner end, having a nose 45 at an angle to said trip plate orshoe 47 is supported by a crank arm 48, of the same formation as thecrank arm 46., the crank arm 48 being pivotally mounted on the sleepersonly', as is also shown in Fig. 1. The nose 45 of the trip' arm 44 ofthe pivot rod 43 is of sufficient length to extend in thev path of thelower end of the dog 3l as the gear' 25' is turned in a downwarddirection, and therefore the lower end of the dog 31 striking the nose45 of the crank arm 44 will carry the said crank arm down to asubstantially horizontal position at the bottom of the casing of thedevice, as is illustrated in Figs. l and 4, and since the crank arms 44and 46 extend in substantially opposite directions, as the crank arm 44is pressed downward the outer crank arm 46 is elevated and the tripplate or shoe 47 is carried upward beyond the tread of the rail, so thatwhen a train passes along the track the engine wheel will strike theplate 47, depress the same and cause the inner crank arm 44 of thereleasing device to be carried upward and outward, whereupon since it isin engagement with the dog 3l, it will carry the" dog with it and causethe tooth 30 of the dog to leave the flange 27 of the wheel 26 of thehammer shaft, thus freeing said shaft and permitting its spring 29 toact to force the hammer to strike a blow upon the exposed torpedo. lnthe' event the torpedo is not exploded through a re"- verse movement ofthe lever D, the torpedo and its feed bar 16 can be drawn inward totheir normal positions and this is accomplished automatically when thesignal is set for safety. l

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent,`

l. 1n a device for placing torpedoes, a casing, an anvil at the exteriorof the casing, a feed device for torpedoes,

movable to and from the anvil, means for supplying to'r-y pedoes to ther'eed device, a hammer operative to andfrom the anvil, a settingmechanism for the hammer, means for simultaneously operating the feeddevice and setting mechanism, and a trip for the latter.

2. In torpedo placers, a feed device for' torpedoes, a hammer mounted toact upon a torpedo fed by said device, a setting mechanism for thehammer and means common t0 both the feed device and setting mechanismfor simul` taneously operating both, and a trip for the settingmechanism adapted to be acted upon by a passing train.

3. In torpedo placers, a feed device for torpedoes, a hammer mounted toact upon a torpedo fed hy said device, a setting mechanism for thehammer, an operating lever common to and having simultaneous operationupon the feed device and setting mechanism, a signal controllingmechanism connected with the said lever, a trip for the settingmechanism, and means for operating the trip by a passing train.

4. In a torpedo placer, a feed device for torpedoes, atension-controlled hammer for exploding a torpedo, a settingmechanismfor the hammer, a signal operating mechanism, means foroperating the feed device and the setting mechanism by the movement ofthe signal controlling mechanism, and a trip device for the hammersetting mechanism.

5. In a torpedo placer, a feed device for torpedoes, atension-controlled hammer for exploding a torpedo, a setting mechanismfor the hammer, a signal operating mechanism, means for operating thefeed device and the setting mechanism by the movement of the signalcontrolling mechanism, a trip for the hammer setting mechanism set bysaid mechanism, means for operating the said -trip by a passing train,and means for consecutively supplying torpedoes to the said feed device.

G. In a torpedo placer, a casing provided with a magazine chamber' fortorpedoes, a follower within said chamber and an anvil at the outer sideof the casing, a torpedo feed har receivingtorpedoes from the magazinechamber, a support for the said feed bar, the bed of which support is inhorizontal alinement with the upper face of the anvil, aspring-controlled shaft, a hammer secured to said shaft adapted formovement to and from the anvil, a setting' mechanism for the said shaftof the hammer, a locking device for the shaft when in set position, anoperating lever having simultaneous operative connection with thesetting mechanism for the Ihammer and the feed bar, and a trip for thelocking device for the hammer shaft, adapted to be operated from a pointoutside of the casing.

T. In a torpedo placer, a casing provided with a magazine chamber, afollower therein, a torpedo feed device operating across and receivingmaterial from the said magazine chamber, a hammer, a spring-controlledshaft therefor, the hammer being adapted for striking engagement withthe torpedo fed by the said feed bar, a segmental gear loosely mountedon the said shaft, a dog carried by the said gear, adapted forcontrolling engagement with said shaft, a lever mounted within thecasing, having teeth for engagement with the teeth on the feed bar andteeth for simultaneous engagement with the teeth of the said segmentalgear, and a trip device for the said dog operative from a point outsideof the casing.

8. In a torpedo placer, the combination with a casing having a magazinechamber for torpedoes formed therein, a follower in said magazinechamber, a bed crossing the said chamber and located Within the casing,Which bed is continued out beyond a side of the casing to form an anvil,and a feed bar mounted to Slide upon the said bed t-o and from its anvilprojection, the said bar being provided with an opening or pocket at oneend to receive torpedoes from the said magazine chamber, of aspring-controlled shaft located Within the casing and extending beyond aside thereof, a hammer secured to the said shaft, adapted for movementto and from the anvil, a Wheel secured to the shaft. having a peripheralrecess, a segmental gear loosely mounted on the shaft, a dog carried bythe gear, engaging mounted within the casing, having a toothed surfacefor engagement with the teeth of the feed bar, and a second with theperipheral surface of the said Wheel, a lever toothed surface forengagement With the vsegmental gear, a switch-controlled mechanism, aconnection between said mechanism and the said lever, a trip for thedog, located within the casing, and means for operating the said trip bya passing train, which means are at the exterior of the casing.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing Witnesses.

, FREDERICK JAMES.

Witnesses:

ALBERT CLARKE, H. R. JAMEs.

